The present disclosure relates generally to an arrangement for, and a method of, loading freight into a shipping container and, more particularly, to dimensioning and/or weighing the freight in an uninterrupted, continuous manner prior to loading.
It is generally known in the shipping industry to use industrial vehicles, such as forklifts, to lift and move freight, typically mounted on pallets, from warehouses or like facilities into shipping containers for transport by truck, railroad, boat, and airplane, etc. Since the recipients of the freight are typically charged by the dimensions (volume) and weight of the freight, it is known to dimension and weigh the freight prior to loading. Knowing the dimensions of the freight is also useful for determining the order in which the freight is to be loaded, and to fill as much of the shipping container as possible for efficient handling and distribution.
To that end, it is known for a forklift to lift and advance the freight to a weighing scale or dimensioning station while sometimes first waiting for access to the scale/station, to then stop and lower the freight onto the scale/station, and to then retreat and back away from the scale/station while the freight is being weighed or dimensioned. While the freight is stationary at the scale/station, a set of overhead laser scanners with range finders are moved above and past the freight over a time period of several seconds during which the freight is scanned, and range information from the freight is captured. The range information is then processed by processing equipment to obtain the dimensions of the freight. After the scanning, the forklift starts again, returns to the scale/station, lifts the freight off the scale/station, and then advances to the shipping container to be loaded. Although generally useful, this known dimensioning and weighing procedure has not proven to be altogether satisfactory in practice not only due to the high cost of the scanners and associated processing equipment, but also, even more importantly, due to the interrupted movement of the freight. As described, the forklift has to be repeatedly stopped and started, and the scanning/dimensioning of each item of freight takes a non-negligible amount of time to be performed. The loading procedure of the shipping container is thus delayed and is inefficient.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to expedite, and more efficiently conduct, the loading procedure, and to dimension and/or weigh the freight in an uninterrupted, frictionless, continuous, and more cost-effective manner prior to loading.
Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions and locations of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of embodiments of the present invention.
The arrangement and method components have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present invention so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein.